Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Email1. Bonham Carter, Hathaway and Rihanna dive into Ocean’s 8 It’s seven down, one to go for Ocean’s 8. The Gary Ross-directed reboot could already count Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett on board and now it seems confirmations are incoming for another five actors. Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna and Nora Lunn (Awkwafina’s acting name) have all entered into final talks for the project, according to Deadline. Ross has written the script alongside Olivia Milch and, as yet, there are no details on how the plot might differ to either of the Ocean’s originals. That said, Steven Soderbergh’s involvement as producer means it’ll presumably bear a close relation to the 2001 remake, but probably without Don Cheadle popping up to say how the gang are in Barney. Barney Rubble. Trouble. No, me neither. 2. Adam Sandler may be terrible, but he’s popular Remember that exclusive four-movie deal Netflix signed with Adam Sandler back in 2014? Remember how we all thought it was a terrible idea? Especially after the first film, The Ridiculous 6, achieved a rare 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, while The Do-Over made it to a whopping 5%. Well you may not be laughing, but Netflix sure is. Netflix’s chief content officer Ted Sarandos told The Hollywood Reporter this week that the first two flicks both premiered at No. 1 in every single Netflix territory around the world. And they’ve got staying power too, with The Do-Over – now 5 months old – still in the global Top 10. So, guys, if you’ve got a fart machine and a couple of ol- fashioned stereotypes in your backpocket, you may yet make it big in Hollywood, kid. 3. A new trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story flies in The highly anticipated new trailer for Gareth Edwards’ Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has been smuggled online by rebels and/or Disney’s social media professionals and it looks very, very good. Through 120 seconds we’re able to get glimpses at AT-ATs, Ben Mendelsohn’s cape collection, ominous voiceovers and some kind of moon. Wait… 4. David Fincher might be reanimating the World War Z sequel Proving that not all that is dead stays that way, it looks like Brad Pitt, Paramount and Skydance are having a real serious chat with David Fincher about him directing the sequel to World War Z. Despite mixed reviews and a whole lot of reshoots the original World War Z, based on Max Brooks’ bestselling book, ended up shuffling to a $540 million box office. Pitt has long been trying to make a second instalment and, according to Variety, talks are at an advanced stage for a fourth collaboration between Pitt and Fincher, marking an upturn in the project’s fortune. Alas, it was only in January that J.A. Bayona left the project to play with his dinosaurs in the Jurassic World world. Still, there are a number of obstacles to getting Fincher to sign – not least that he hasn’t directed since 2014’s Gone Girl and has had a pretty bad experience with sequels in the past. 5. Forget the Iron Throne, it’s all about The Silver Chair C.S. Lewis is an author loved the world over, but the big-screen adaptations of his work have yet to strike a global chord. While The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe performed admirably back in 2005, it was followed by the bland Prince Caspian in 2008. Then 2010’s The Voyage of the Dawn Treader had Eddie Izzard voicing a mouse so… Still, three mediocre entries only serve to reinforce the age-old idiom that fourth time’s the charm. David Magee, Oscar-nominated screenwriter of Finding Neverland and Life of Pi, is reportedly helming the new script, providing us with a false sense of hope about proceedings. Better yet, it appears there’ll be a complete overhaul of the franchise, with new characters, a new style, a new universe. Maybe we can finally push past the undeniably cute, but limited, first films to deliver something truly spellbinding. 6. Morgan features a shouting Paul Giamatti, as if there’s any other kind With this summer marking one of the most ‘meh’ selection of blockbusters we’ve seen in a long time, we finally enter what is typically known as Interesting September™. Opening the charge is Sir Ridley Scott’s nipper, Luke Scott, making his directing debut with Morgan. With the likes of Kate Mara, Toby Jones, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Michelle Yeoh on board, Scott the Younger has a particularly strong lineup leading the project. And, as a bonus, we can see he’s got a shouting, bearded Paul Giamatti; a surefire sign of a hit. We’re in. 7. DC sure that another Man of Steel is definitely a good idea Although Warner Bros. has not commented, The Wrap is reporting that the studio has moved a Man of Steel sequel into the fabled “active development” column on their spreadsheet. There are already two untitled DC films earmarked for 5 October 2018 and 1 November 2019, just waiting for a be-spandexed superhero to make their own, but there’s a good chance that probable Batfleck film could slide into one of the two. Still, it’s not like Batman will get first dibs; people still love Superman… 8. It doesn’t look like Ghostbusters will be revived anytime soon Despite being particularly bullish about the chances of a sequel when Ghostbusters was released back in July – “there’s no doubt in my mind”, spake Sony’s president of worldwide distribution – it looks unlikely that we’ll get it any time soon. It seems the much-publicised reboot has managed to use its fancy ghost vacuums to pull in just $180 million worldwide since its release and The Hollywood Reporter has even stated that the picture looks like it might incur a $70 million loss. For its part, Sony has disputed THR’s figures, citing merchandising and the increase in rentals for the ‘84 original. Despite this, Sony is continuing with its plan to spin off the franchise into an animated feature and related television series, with Ivan Reitman at the helm. That’s handy, because Paul Feig has gently suggested that he wouldn’t want to dabble with a classic again. 9. TV spot for Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival… turns up We’ll have to wait another few days for a fuller picture of Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming ‘‘uh-oh! aliens!’’ film, Arrival, but the latest TV spot does a damn good job of setting out what’s in store without giving much away. Sure, when the three-minute trailer comes out we’ll probably see the final few moments and some gratuitous explosions but, for now, it’s nice to wallow in the mystery. 10. Shocking news: Disney make good money from good movies With Warner Bros. attempting to force every potential D.C. franchise into existence kicking and screaming, it’s nice to see a studio that spent time actually building itself a coherent universe turn a profit. Disney reported quarterly net income of nearly $2.6 billion (up 4.6% on last year), and a fair chunk can be attributed to their stunning opening quarter of films [via Deadline]. In this quarter alone, they’ve released Captain America: Civil War, The Jungle Book, and Finding Dory, as well as pocketed the home video sales for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Zootopia/Zootropolis. So, what does it all mean? Well, the studio arm of Disney saw revenues soar an eye-watering 40% to $2.8 billion, with an operating income up 62% to $766 million. In other words, lunch is on Disney. – SON & DB Your Week In Film: Ocean’s 8, Disney’s rich, Adam Sandler’s popular and more! was last modified: August 12th, 2016 by Stephen O'Nion Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Email